Sunday, I got up at 3:30 am. I recognized that I was in Alpha state for the first 5 minutes after I woke up, so that first step is of awareness is there from watching Vishen's masterclass. Speaking of - Day 6 of Be Extraordinary talked about the Buddha & the badass. We can't be removed from society if we want to change it. We must use the wisdom we gain from introspection, Kensho, Satori and translate it into action in the world. Head in the forest, hands in society. It dispels the notion of having to renounce worldly things in order to be spiritual. We don't need to choose between the ascetic Buddha and the successful, world-changing badass. The Buddha is the badass. The exercise today is to think about 'have I ever felt that I had to give up my desires in order to be truly spiritual?'
In a word, the answer is yes. I've definitely felt that at earlier points on my inner journey. I'm not sure where and when the assumption was placed that I couldn't do both (maybe I'll have to do an inner child regression hypnotherapy session sometime) but I definitely had that belief. I think growing up going to SSE (Sathya Sai Education), I either heard ancient stories or unrelatable fables about gurus and yogis and kings and queens or stories about Swami's miracles. His ability to seemingly move mountains to make the impossible a reality seemed too God-like. Too unattainable. So were the sages who lived for years, decades at ashrams, temples, monasteries. There wasn't any representation of modern-day, spiritual, holistically successful people that I could view as role models. Or if there were, I didn't have access to them. It was at the extreme ends of the spectrum. Only in college (and even then only partly) and after college has it become more mainstream to be 'spiritual.'
Hmm. I think actually as I've gotten older, I have had more desires. I don't think that's a bad thing. If I were to graph my desires and spirituality as two series of lines on the same chart, they'd be very closely linked. As my spirituality, understanding of the self, has increased, so have my desires. I think it's a result of me recognizing with more clarity what I want my life to stand for, who I envision being a part of that journey, the material things I may way to help me achieve that vision, the abundance I attract. With more alignment and focus, I know exactly what I'm attracting. The thing is the sensual desires become more and more the means to an end instead of the end itself. I can want the same fancy car, private jet, luxury hotel stay, etc. as someone else. The difference is in the intentions. I want those material things to help me achieve my vision of changing the world. Those intermediary desires are all the how. If I have a North Star, the what, that is love-intentioned, then I can achieve that mission with or without those material things. So I guess it's all about finding the ultimate vision for my future first. Then the desires will naturally occur but will help me achieve those goals.
Day 7 of Be Extraordinary was titled The Art of Blissipline. Another word that I believe Lakhiani coined. A lot of the video was actually very similar to the Be-Do-Have triangle concept from Yad Bhavam. He had Srikumar Rao discuss the If-Then model of happiness, which is basically the Have-Do-Be order of the triangle. If I have this or If I do this, then I'll be happy. Instead of being happy and then being able to do and have whatever you'd like. Which for the last couple of years I think I'm pretty solid with that approach.
The new thing that they introduced here was the Reverse Gap list. Every time we start to think of desires that we think will make us happy, switch the timeframe. What were things we had desires of before and they happened and we've just kinda let fade into our mundanity & routineness? What can we be grateful for from that perspective in the last 1,2,3 years?
Reverse Gap List
More energy
Better physical shape
Doing more meditation
More journaling
Deeper connections with friends & family
More ownership and leadership at home & work
Having my own place
Learning more about finance
Being exposed to more types of content
Wardrobe / fashion
Making strides towards accomplishing bold ideas
Producing more content
Productivity space at home & work
Clarity of long term vision
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